Stop Milking Leads. Start Building People. I Community System Fuelled by your data >>> Check featured

We all know this section is overrated. 

If you want to find out more, let’s chat and meet.

It will be the most accurate version of both of us. 


Sandra Macele

Knowledge is information. You can copy it, screenshot it, repeat it, even turn it into a carousel. Anyone can say the same facts you say five minutes later.

If you have AI - you have knowledge.

On the other hand ... your judgement. 

Judgment is what you do when:
↳ the facts are messy, 
↳ the options all have tradeoffs, 
↳ and the consequences are real.

But this is why people follow other people. 

Folks are not looking for more information, but for a decision-making compass. 

An identity, if you wish. 
A tribe of similars.

BUT ...
... judgment requires a spine.

It means it costs you something.

To have judgment, you have to be willing to:
↳ disappoint people,
↳ to choose one path,
↳ make enemies,
↳ to say “no” to the easy answer,
↳ and to hold a standard even when it would be profitable to soften it.

Knowledge can be shared without courage.

Judgment can’t, because judgment is where your values show up when you are under pressure.


↳ 
If you like what I create up here, 
I’d appreciate one quick thing:

✦ Save > or
✦ Share > or
✦ Comment.

So LinkedIn shows it to more people. 
Then ↳ 🔔 so the new algo doesn’t bury me.

For the people who think dangerously well I Scaling Intellectual Authority I Thought Leadership I ex CMO & Creative Director 🌃 Storyteller, raised on cyberpunk fiction 🇪🇺

A liar is easy to spot. At some point, the story breaks, and you go: that doesn't add up.

Done.

But there's a different type of folks, and these ones are harder to catch.

Because they don't lie.

They say something that is PARTLY TRUE, and you kind of see yourself in that story. Maybe last Tuesday, scrolling at 11 pm, wondering why your business isn't working.

And this person shows up in your feed and says the exact stuff your brain was already half-baking.

And they say it with such certainty that it feels … like someone just handed you the answer.

And that's the trick.

I rarely see creators who are fully transparent with what can be done.

Just pump the dream, sell the stuff, brag with numbers, repeat. 

And when someone speaks to you with total certainty, you relax.

You start handing your judgment over to someone whose entire business model depends on you never developing your own.

And that's how you end up with a feed full of nice, confident little butternuggets that make you dumber.

Post by post.

I have some rules for myself.

In public:
↳ Be honest. 
The right people will see it, appreciate it ... and you have better chances for a good relationship.

In private:
↳ Always tell people what I can't do for them.

I literally tell them:
→ I am not useful here: x x x x
→ This is what I don't know x x x x
→ This is what I can't achieve x x x x
→ Here's where my thing ends and your thing begins.

And the other thing I do, which most people will never do:
↳ I tell my students to push back on my stuff.

Because I'm not going to be one more person on this green ball who trains you to shut up and nod.

Writing this, I don't have in mind any creator particularly - general observation and experience. 👀  Looking at you guys, promising transformations you can't deliver with certainty. 

Just be honest. 

It is a better "branding strategy".



↳
If you like what I create up here,
I’d appreciate one quick thing:
✦ Save > or
✦ Share > or
✦ Comment.
↳ 🔔

A lot of creators apologize constantly:
↳ Landing page not working — sorry.
↳ Double post scheduled — sorry.
↳ I was gone for 1 week — sorry.
↳ Failed launch — sorry sorry sorry.

My personal list of these has 99 bullet points at the moment.

A whole clusterfunk.

Somebody texts me:
↳ "Landing page not working" 
— (seen)

↳ "You did not answer me." 
— (seen)

↳ "You sound a bit rough." 
— (seen)

I refuse to apologise for any of it.

Actually, I am NOT sorry.

Us women like to do this particularly.

We overexplain, because our social contract requires us to do the extra emotional labour, so others can feel comfortable.

(Gotta keep the smiling up, ladies!)

😅 

But this isn't only a gender thing ...
It's a MOTIVATION thing.

People with autonomous motivation are simply more resistant to social pressure and external inputs.

Actually, one of the strongest predictors of original, sustained creative work (thought leadership) is intrinsic motivation.

Based on studies, there are 6 levels of motivation:

1. Dead battery (Amotivation)
↳ "I don't even know why I'm doing this anymore."

2. The algorithm leash (External Regulation)
↳ "If I don't post, I lose reach."
↳ You create because something outside you demands it.

3. The shame engine (Introjected Regulation)
↳ "If I mess up, people will judge me."
↳ You create to protect your ego & to prove you're good enough.

4. The strategic grind (Identified Regulation)
↳ "I don't love this today, but I know it matters."
↳ You genuinely believe the work serves a bigger goal. But you don't always enjoy it.

5. The work IS the identity (Integrated Regulation)
↳ The work is fully aligned with who you are. There's still an outcome (an audience, a business, a body of work), but it doesn't feel external anymore because the values behind it are completely yours. Failure stings less because your self-worth isn't riding on the result.

6. Pure play (Intrinsic Motivation)
↳ You create because the act of creating is the reward. You'd write at 2am with no publish button. This is the painter who paints alone and the writer who fills piles of notebooks.

We can carry more than one at a time. 
The question is which one's dominant.

When 2 and 3 run the show (algorithm anxiety and shame spirals) that's where the apology reflex lives. 

At 5 and 6, the pressure doesn't disappear. You just stop running your decisions through it.

My dominant motivation swings between 5 and 6.

I create because this is mine and I enjoy it.

Motivation at 5 and 6 makes you un-outworkable.

Because you don't need to recover from bad feedback when your motivation isn't attached to the reception.

I still have 99 problems.

😆 

P.S. If your dominant motivation sits at 1–3, I would not advise you to buy anything from me. More public visibility just means more hits to your self-worth. I talk about these things in my newsletter. Comment section.

You know what's funny about LinkedIn? You post something. You spend an hour on it. Maybe two. You hit publish ... and then you sit there waiting like it's a …(censorship).

And then the algorithm goes … nah. Not today, buttercup.

And you think it's about you. 
But it's not. 

It's about a platform that owns your audience, your data, and your reach — and can change all three while you're asleep.

I've been thinking about this a lot lately.

The people who subscribe to your newsletter don't accidentally scroll past you. 

They went on a page ... 
Typed their email in a box ...
And said: "You can land in my inbox, between my bank and my mother."

That's more than a follow. 
The newsletter people chose you, and they gave you their data. 

I'd argue that's more valuable than 100,000 followers who may or may not see your next post.

So if you're sitting here thinking about what platform to open next … maybe don't. Maybe look at the people who already said yes and start treating that list like what it actually is.

The most important thing you "own".

Anyway — tomorrow we're hosting Des Brown. 

He's answering questions about all of this. 
LinkedIn Live. 
Show up if you want.

Camila Gamboa Ramírez, Brian Berkenstock and 7 other connections attending

Most ideas die at checkpoint one, because social media was built to exploit brain filters. So I wanted to understand what ACTUALLY happens when a stranger sees our posts.

The brain version of the story, which is the story the social media tech is built on.

So I went into deep research.

cognitive psychology
persuasion theory
attention science

Studies from the 1920s to today.

(I was actually surprised, how much of the old stuff still applies today)

I mapped every moment between scrolling and following (I call it COMMIT in the model).

What I found: 
very precisely documented brain points (actions), and our content runs through them every single time.

Then I went one step further, and I turned each brain filter into an AI prompt you can run on your own content before you post.

That also took long. 

😅 

Hook prompts.
CTA prompts. 
Analysis prompts.

Subscribe to my newsletter: 
https://lnkd.in/eDj9GKwU

& I'll ship it your way 😉

The Attention Model

I don’t usually post during weekends - but my friend Robert van Tongeren has so much talent (he doesn’t see in himself fully yet) that I need and want to bring this forward to my feed. 

Beautiful work and you are just starting!!! Proud of you!!! 👏

Ps. He does the illustrations!

Delight clients before they’re clients | Content strategy that makes you look like a genius

I used to hate Valentines Day. Now it's a very special day to me.

I never felt we needed a special day to celebrate love (and remind single people how lonely they are). But now I have a good reason to celebrate.

Anyway, decided to write (and draw) a story about it. Read below if Valentines day put you in a romantic mood 😁

Anti Valentines Day: A Love Story

He read every post I ever wrote. Every. Single. One. 3 years of my LinkedIn - from my very first publication to yesterday. Then he said: 

"It was a mistake because I have 10,000 questions now. Enough for a full 12-episode series."

😂

So we're doing it.
But in one LinkedIn LIVE event!

Jean-Philippe Derout — Fractional COO who builds systems for businesses — is putting me on the hot seat. 

I have no idea what he will be asking me ... there are no scripts and no manufactured answers.

Raw and uncomfortable - exactly how this entire online thing is.

What happens when an operations expert reverse-engineers your entire content journey?

😅 

Well, I guess we are about to find out.

If you're posting, growing, and still can't figure out how to monetize — this is the event.

📅 TODAY | 🕕 6:30 PM Central European Time

See you!

A COO asking me the difficult questions about my business

The more you try to be liked, the less you can be believed.

Yesterday I rambled for one hour about my fails up here. Jean-Philippe Derout made a free workshop for anyone struggling to tackle the business side of offer creation. 

I highly recommend J.P. - he goes against the deceptive marketing and business practices we often see up here and he genuinely cares about people.

Which you want. People willing to go an extra mile for you. 

It’s a free workshop.

Note - workshop. You will actively work during the hour. 

Good luck!

Make it run. | Business Operations for founders outgrowing their structure I Sans panique | Fractional COO & Growth Architect | Advisory Board member @La Bananerie

Sandra Macele built 10K followers before she found the offer that actually resonated with her audience and with herself.

Most solopreneurs are doing the same thing right now.

Building audience, creating custom work for every client with no clear offer nor way to test what's scalable until you're already exhausted.

Join me Wednesday, 18:00 CET for a 90minutes workshop: Build a valuable offer that can scale.

You'll create the V0.001 of your offer blueprint:
The problem you solve (and for who) 
The delivery system (fixed process, not custom labor) 
The feedback loop (test it with the people in the room before you launch)

P.S. Bring your current offer (or the mess you think might become one). We're building live with peers, not theorizing.

Vishal Thacker, Brian Berkenstock and 4 other connections attending

View event: Build a valuable offer that doesn't rely on your constant manual effort

Build a valuable offer that doesn't rely on your constant manual effort

We all have six “magic” sealants that close the language leaks where sales slip away.

Through a few quick exercises — AI help welcome — you’ll gather all six and apply the fix across LinkedIn, your website, newsletters, and other comms.

Hosted in one hour by brilliant Brian Berkenstock, all welcome to join.

Add event to your calendar.

In one hour, Zoom meeting (not LinkedIn Live).

Let's gooo!

Brian Berkenstock, Simon Schmitz and 1 other connection attending

View event: Identify language leaks slowing your sales

Identify language leaks slowing your sales

Please read this. Our creator colleague Laura has a request.

Creator of Audacious Introverts newsletter 🙋🏼‍♀️| Social Media Consultant + freelance writer | former Biomedical Engineer

I am at a Hospital in Thailand and I need your help.

My stepdad had emergency surgery in Thailand. Now, we need to bring him back home to Spain. 

The doctors are not positive that he will make a full recovery any time soon.

Because of his condition, we need to contract a medical air ambulance. The cost is almost 200k. The insurance will not pay anything. 

For this reason, I am collecting funds to support my family. 

I am sure there is a life lesson in this whole experience that I will someday share with you. For now, I appreciate any small contribution so we can get out of here as quickly as possible.

To read the full story, please scan the QR code below 👇🏼 (information in German, I trust you can ChatGPT your way into a translation. I don’t have it in me at the moment).

I appreciate you more than I can say at the moment. Please send all the AI bots my way to amplify reach. Thank you💜

When I think of G. Kofi Annan I think of one of the most resourceful people in my circle. 

He knows all the tricks.
He moves super fast when he needs to. 
He is sharp and always kind. 

If you have time, I warmly recommend this event. 

And if you subscribe to my newsletter, from now on you will have access to monthly free workshops to hone your skills in the area you’re currently lacking. 

All best people in one spot, at your service. 

Hope Tuesday is treating you well. 

Lots of work here, little sleep. 

✌️

Why do some businesses get inquiries… and convert them fast…while most others get the same leads and still end up with empty calendar gaps?

It's not because the leads are “low quality.”

It's not because you need a new funnel.

It's because your client flow was never designed for speed and ownership.

Most businesses are running the old model:
- More tools. 
- More channels. 
- More handoffs.

And then hoping the right person follows up at the right time.

It's too slow. 
And slow follow-up kills trust and blocks revenue.

This FREE workshop gives you a solution to that problem.

It's called Client Flow Reset.

The old way is more marketing.

The new way is a cleaner path from attention → trust → conversion.

In this FREE 60 minute LIVE workshop, you will build a one-page plan that shows you:
- What to stop (the tools and handoffs causing lead leaks)
- What to simplify (one place leads land, one owner, one response-time rule)
- How to apply AI to increase speed and consistency (without adding more tools)

You'll leave with a checklist you can implement immediately.

Perfect for you if…
- You are getting inquiries but conversion is inconsistent
- Leads are spread across calls, DMs, forms, email, and “whoever saw it first”
- You want a simpler system that converts without hiring more people

Can't make it live?

Register anyway and you'll get the replay and worksheets.

To secure your spot, click the event page below. 👇

Brian Berkenstock, Sandra Macele and 1 other connection attending

View event: Cut Marketing Chaos + Get More Clients with AI - FREE Workshop

Cut Marketing Chaos + Get More Clients with AI - FREE Workshop

Helping execs in new roles accelerate impact, build credibility fast and avoid costly transition mistakes | xIBM Consulting | xPwC | Certified Executive Coach

You’ve just landed your next big executive role - congratulations!

Now comes the part no one prepares you for: making it successful.

The hard truth is, 40% of executive transitions fail within 18 months.

And the cost is staggering:

2.5x to 30x the executive’s salary in lost productivity, turnover, and disruption.

Career damage for the executive that can take years to recover from.

Maybe it's your first time at the senior leadership table. 
Maybe you've done this before, but this time, the stakes feel higher. 
Different company, industry, department or role.

Either way, you know this first year will define your reputation and your results.

Tell me if this sounds familiar:

You've inherited a team that doesn't fully trust you yet. 
You're navigating company politics, shifting priorities, and sky-high expectations. 
Everyone's watching, but no one's guiding. 
You're smart, experienced, and capable. 
But the pressure to prove yourself is relentless.

This is exactly where I come in.

I help new executives thrive where 40% fail by guiding them through the high-stakes first year.

My coaching is confidential, personalized, and focused on helping you:

✔ Earn trust quickly and secure early credibility
✔ Navigate politics and hidden organizational dynamics
✔ Build and align your leadership team for quick wins
✔ Make high-impact decisions without costly missteps
✔ Lay the foundation for long-term success and legacy

 Why Trust Me?
• 25+ years in Fortune 500 consulting, partnering with senior executives 
• Led $30M+ transformation portfolios and 250+ person practices at IBM 
• Led risk strategy for $100M+ proposals and complex transformations 
• Built and delivered IBM's top global executive coaching programs 
• Certified executive coach with 300+ leaders coached

If you’re ready to accelerate your impact and avoid costly missteps,

let’s make your first year your strongest. 

📩 DM me “Executive Transition” and let’s talk.

Dora Vanourek

The most painful part of growth:

The people closest to you will try to stop it.

And the faster you grow, the more uncomfortable others become.

It's not personal - it's human nature:

-  The edge in "wow, you've changed"
-  The unsolicited advice to "be careful"
-  The subtle comments that diminish what you've built

People prefer the version of you they're used to.

Some feel threatened by your progress.

Others try to keep you "safe" in your comfort zone.

5 ways to protect your growth:

1. Audit Your Circle 👥
↳ Who celebrates your wins vs. who diminishes them?
↳ Distance isn't betrayal, it's boundaries

2. Stop Explaining Yourself 🤐
↳ You don't owe anyone a justification for growth
↳ Let your results do the talking

3. Track Your Progress 📈
↳ Screenshot encouraging feedback and messages
↳ Celebrate small victories, they compound into big changes

4. Find Your Growth Squad 🔗
↳ Seek people 2-3 steps ahead of you
↳ Invest in mentors who've walked your path

5. Trust Yourself 💪
↳ Your intuition knows before your mind does
↳ Bet on yourself when no one else will

The people who truly support you will celebrate your growth.

Don't shrink yourself to make others comfortable.

♻️ Repost to remind someone they don’t need permission to grow
➕ Follow Dora Vanourek for more

Executive Advisor for Senior Leaders Navigating a New Role | ex-IBM | ex-PwC | CPCC

A year ago, I left my 25+ years tech consulting career.

To build something of my own.

My friends couldn't understand why I'd leave stability.

Others questioned if it was "too late" to start over.

A few called it a midlife crisis.

But then I found my new people.

Entrepreneurs who'd walked away from golden handcuffs.

Creators building empires from their expertise.

Leaders who measured success differently.

Their ambition didn't make me feel behind.

It showed me what was possible.

When you change your path, you need people who've already taken the leap.

5 ways to upgrade your circle:

1. Audit your conversations - are you talking about problems or possibilities?

2. Join spaces where your future self would hang out, not where you currently are.

3. Share your bold goals openly - ambitious people are drawn to other dreamers.

4. Ask "What are you building?" instead of "How's work?"

5. Give yourself permission to outgrow relationships that hold you to your old life.

Your old circle will keep you comfortable.

Your new circle will keep you growing.

Evolve your circle.
Choose growth.

♻️ Repost to remind someone to find their circle
➕ Follow Dora Vanourek for more

We've built hiring systems that strip away humanity.

Then we wonder why trust is broken from day one.

It’s because we have normalized 
the unacceptable:

❌ Posting ghost jobs to signal growth
→ while real people wait for an email that never comes

❌ Automated rejections
→ after someone spent hours filling out a complicated application form

❌ Six rounds of interviews
→ because no one trusts anyone else's judgement

❌ Ghosting people after the final rounds
→ because giving feedback is not a priority

❌ "Not enough experience"
→ when they could learn the job in a month

The hiring managers feel this too.

They're drowning in reqs.
Pressured by systems they didn't design.
Told to move fast while also de-risking every hire.

People are not numbers.

Every resume represents someone's hopes.
Their rent. Their kids' futures.
Their career turning point.

To the hiring managers doing their best within broken systems:

Thank you. It matters more than you know.

♻️ Repost if you believe hiring should be more human
➕ Follow Dora Vanourek for more

Leadership isn’t earned with a title.

It’s built when people feel safe.

Safe to speak up.
Safe to fail.
Safe to rest.

Build a culture where taking time off doesn’t come with guilt.

What to do as a leader:

✅ Be a role model for taking time off:
↳ Take time off - and talk about it. Normalize rest

✅ Recognize efforts: 
↳ Acknowledge achievements that promote well-being rather than appreciating health sacrifices

✅ Encourage flexibility: 
↳ Trust your team to deliver in ways that work for them

✅ Prevent post-vacation overload: 
↳ Plan ahead to make returning from time off manageable

✅ Conduct meaningful check-ins: 
↳ Make 1:1s safe spaces to talk about well-being and workload

What to avoid as a leader:

❌ Praising work while sick:
↳ "Thank you for working even though you don't feel well" 
↳ This sends the wrong message about your company's values

❌ Neglecting feedback: 
↳ Ignoring employee feedback about workload and stress

❌ Discouraging time off:
↳ Making employees feel guilty for taking breaks

❌ Setting unrealistic goals: 
↳ Targets that require overwork are unsustainable

❌ Promoting an "Always On" culture: 
↳ Expecting 24/7 availability, even on weekends or vacations

Be the leader you wish you had.

📌 Navigating your first year in a new role?
Get weekly insights in The First Year newsletter:

dora.coach

Image credit: Adam Grant

Betting on myself scared me more than staying stuck.

So I finally chose fear instead.

You might be there right now:

❌ Waiting to feel confident before starting
❌ Seeking perfection before launching
❌ Taking "one more certification" before applying

A year ago, I left my 25+ year corporate career.

And what made leaving possible  
was writing on LinkedIn.

Before that, I was stuck.

Overthinking. Doubting myself. 

Who am I to give career advice when my career isn't perfect?

One day, I just hit ‘post’.

Writing here opened doors I didn't know existed:

New people. New projects. New possibilities.

If you're stuck like I was - start anyway.

The hardest part was taking that first step.

If I'd had a tool like Stanley back then, I would've started sooner.

Stanley isn’t another AI.

It works as a true AI LinkedIn coach:

- shows you what your audience actually wants
- finds patterns you'd never notice yourself
- tells you which posts flopped and why
- gives feedback that stings a little (in a good way)

My posts created with Stanley outperform my others by 35-40%.

Try a free trial of Stanley today: https://lnkd.in/g9nvAJzJ

#stanleypartner

By 30, you should have it figured out.
By 40, you definitely should.
By 50, you shouldn't still be searching.

Society sells us a lie about what "on track" means.

That life should be a clean upward line.

That restarting means you failed.

That feeling lost means something is wrong with you.

When you believe those lies, you end up thinking:

This isn't where I thought I'd be.
I should have done more by now.
I should be further along.

I've felt that since walking away from 25 years in corporate.

The exhausting performance of "I'm fine."

The promise that tomorrow will be different 
- and then another day passes and nothing changes.

The shame of feeling behind, 
based on someone else's timeline.

You're not broken.

You're in process.

The most successful people I know restarted more times than they'll ever admit:

- New careers at 35
- New cities at 42
- New identities at 53

The only regret would be staying stuck 
because someone told you it's too late.

You are the greatest project you'll ever work on.

Don't give up on yourself.

♻️ Repost for someone who needs a restart
➕ Follow Dora Vanourek for more

Changing jobs doesn't mean you're unstable.

It means you're brave enough to admit you want more.

Too often, career moves are seen as betrayals.

But the real betrayal to yourself is staying
somewhere that no longer serves your growth.

5 signs it's time to make your move:

1. Your work has lost its meaning
→ You go through the motions, but the spark is gone

2. You've outgrown your role
→ What once challenged you now feels like autopilot

3. You know you're wasting your potential
→ That nagging voice keeps saying "you're capable of so much more."

4. Sunday night dread has become your reality
→ The anxiety starts earlier each weekend

5. You don't feel seen or valued
→ Another quarter, another "great job" that leads nowhere

Loyalty isn't about staying in one place.
It's about staying true to your potential.

Choose growth over comfort.

You'll never regret betting on yourself.

♻️ Repost to remind someone it's ok to want more
➕ Follow Dora Vanourek for career insights

First-Year Executive Advisor for Newly Appointed Senior Leaders | ex-IBM | ex-PwC | CPCC

You watched them get promoted.

The ones who laughed at the offensive joke.

The ones who stayed quiet when they should've spoken up.

The ones who took credit for your work.

And you wondered if YOU were the problem:

- Maybe I'm too naive
- Maybe I need to "play the game"
- Maybe integrity is just a fancy word for staying stuck

Those promotions came at a cost you can’t see at first.

The person who got ahead by compromising?
They have to keep compromising to stay there.

The person who sold out their values for a title?
They wake up every day performing a version of themselves they won’t recognize.

Adam Grant said it perfectly:

“The highest form of accomplishment is standing by your principles when they're tested.”

You didn't lose.

You refused to pay for a "win" that would have cost you everything.

Your integrity isn't holding you back.

It's the only thing that will matter when the titles fade.

📌 Navigating your first year in a new role?
Get weekly insights in The First Year newsletter:

dora.coach

♻️ Repost to remind someone integrity wins in the end

Image credit: Adam Grant

You know it's time to leave when you
can't recognize yourself anymore.

It's not the tasks that make you miserable.

It's not even the long hours.

It's having to wear a mask every single day:

- Apologizing for having boundaries
- Staying quiet when ethics get violated
- Laughing at your boss's offensive jokes
- Saying "great idea" when you know it'll fail

You tell yourself this is just how work is.

Everyone deals with it.

This is what being professional means.

But when you look in the mirror,
you don't recognize yourself.

People don't quit jobs.
They quit the person they had to become to survive there.

Start small:

- Stop apologizing for leaving on time
- Update your resume tonight
- Connect with one person in your field
- Remember: this isn't forever

There are workplaces where you can disagree without fear.

Where boundaries are respected, not mocked.

Where you don't have to pretend.

You deserve to feel whole again.

♻️ Repost to remind someone this isn't forever
➕ Follow Dora Vanourek for more

75% of people fear public speaking more than death.

Yet it's the No. 1 skill that accelerates careers.

Glossophobia, the fear of public speaking, held me back for years.

I avoided roles where I'd need to speak a lot. 

Declined podcast invitations.

Fear was costing me too much.

Then I found Ultraspeaking.

Here are the 8 techniques that transformed how I speak:

📌 Save these for later.

1. The Accordion Method 
→ Compress your talk to 60s, then 30s, then 15s 
→ Expand back, keeping only what matters 
→ Forces you to find your actual point

2. The Bow & Arrow 
→ Your Arrow = the ONE thing to remember 
→ Your Bow = supporting evidence

3. The Power Pause 
→ Stop for 3-5 seconds after key points 
→ Gives your audience time to absorb 
→ Silence is powerful, not awkward

4. The 2-3 Word Bookmark 
→ Create 2-3 word triggers, don't memorize scripts 
→ "Customer save" → your problem-solving story

5. Never Break Character 
→ Don't apologize for nervousness or mistakes
→ Your anxiety is invisible until you reveal it 

6. The Pushback Pivot 
→ Pause and acknowledge: "That's an important point" 
→ Reframe: "Here's how I see it..." 
→ Use challenges to strengthen your message

7. Use Clarity Prompts when Stuck
→ "The most important thing is..."
→ "If you remember one thing..."

8. The Opening Rule 
→ Rehearse your opening 3x more than the rest 
→ Early confidence will carry you through

These 8 techniques are just the beginning.

Ultraspeaking is different: 

It’s live practice, speaking games, and real-time feedback from other leaders and world-class coaches.

If communication is holding you back, I recommend joining their flagship course:

https://lnkd.in/gH9yVFE8

#ultraspeaking

26% of your promotion depends on executive presence.

But no one explains what those words really mean.

"She lacks executive presence" might be 
the most frustrating feedback ever.

Because it's rarely followed by what to actually do about it.

I've helped leaders work through this exact challenge.

Here are 8 ways to build executive presence:

1. Practise Strategic Silence
→ Leaders who listen first command more respect
→ Ask: "What are your thoughts?" - then pause

2. Name the Elephant
→ The person who calmly names the tension earns instant credibility
→ Say: "Can we talk about what's really going on?"

3. Make Others Look Brilliant
→ The most respected leaders give credit, not take it
→ Say: "That was Sarah's idea" before adding your own take

4. Simplify Complex Ideas
→ True expertise is ensuring others understand
→ Replace jargon with everyday language

5. Own Your Authority
→ Undermining phrases erase years of hard work
→ Drop "just," "kind of," "I think maybe." Say "I recommend."

6. Calibrate Your Reactions
→ Overreacting undermines credibility
→ Ask yourself: "Will this matter in 6 months?"

7. Bring Solutions, Not Problems
→ Great leaders are valued when they solve issues
→ Never raise an issue empty-handed

8. Learn to Disagree Without Drama
→ Executive presence lives in the middle: calm, direct, unafraid
→ Use: "I see it differently. Here's why."

Executive presence isn't about changing who you are.

It’s about showing up as your real, confident self.

📌 Navigating your first year in a new role?
Get weekly insights in The First Year newsletter:

Dora.coach 

♻️ Repost to help your network
➕ Follow Dora Vanourek for more

It starts with one small compromise.

"It's just this once."
"Everyone does it."
"This is how the game is played."

The system doesn't force you to compromise.

It just rewards the people who do with promotions, access, favour.

And makes you wonder what's 
wrong with you for hesitating.

But here's what nobody tells you:

The lies we tell ourselves are the most dangerous ones.

"I'll go back to my values when I make it."
→ You won't. The higher you climb this way, the more you have to protect.

"No one will notice."
→ You will. Every time you look in the mirror.

"I'm doing this for my family."
→ Your family needs your integrity intact - not a sacrifice they never asked you to make.

"I don't have a choice."
→ You do. It's just not the easy one.

The corporate world doesn't break people with one big ask.

It breaks them with a thousand small ones.

You're not naive for wanting to do the right thing.

You're not stuck because you have standards.

You'll sleep better than the ones who traded theirs for a title.

♻️ Repost to remind someone they're not the problem
➕ Follow Dora Vanourek for more

Tiny communication habits shape your career.

They decide how seriously you’re taken.

But most professionals ignore them.

They minimize their expertise with "just."

They apologize when they should thank.

They weaken strong ideas with "perhaps."

And it's costing them respect, credibility, and opportunities.

9 tiny habits that change how you're seen:

1. Stop undermining yourself
→ It diminishes your competence before you even start

2. Be specific with time
→ Vague timelines show you're not organized or reliable

3. Drop the disclaimers
→ Starting defensively makes people brace for conflict before hearing your point

4. Replace "Sorry" with "Thank you"
→ Constant apologies make you appear insecure and waste everyone's time

5. Be the problem-solver
→ Refusing to help shows you're not ready for bigger roles

6. Eliminate maybe language
→ Uncertain words make others question if you believe in your own ideas

7. Drop "Just" from your vocabulary
→ This word minimizes your contributions and authority

8. Be open to new approaches
→ Shutting down new ideas makes you the obstacle everyone works around

9. End with confidence, not doubt
→ Seeking immediate validation undermines everything you said

How you speak shapes how you're seen.

Own your words, own your impact.

PS: Which one would you add to the list?

📌 Navigating your first year in a new role?
Get weekly insights in The First Year newsletter:
dora.coach   

♻️ Repost to remind someone small shifts make a big difference
➕ Follow Dora Vanourek for more

taplio

The Battle

Sandra Macele

Dora Vanourek

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance ScoreSandra Macele's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreDora Vanourek's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

taplio

The Battle

Sandra Macele

Dora Vanourek

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Sandra Macele's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreDora Vanourek's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreSandra Macele's LinkedIn Performance